Safety-switch-operating device



.SAFETY SWITCH KRANTZ. OPERATING DEVICE.

' APPLICATION FILED Auaz. 1911.

Patented Dec.,

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rrr-.arverne-` nnw `nenn, a ccnronarron or new inenten tpeelncation et :Letters latent.

` Fatented Dec.. d, N22i..

dpplllcatien tiled .august 2, llll. tierial lto. idillio.

To all @cham it' may concern:

Fe it lrnownthatl, ltlnnnn'r lineaire, residing at Brooklyn, in, the county oi liings and dtate of Flew York, have invented certain new vand useful improvements in a Satety-Switch-'Uperating lDevice, ci which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a satety switch operating device.

d particular object oil the invention is to provide a simple, practical, and thoroughly edicient means :tor guarding 'against lilrelihood ci the switch being, lett in the on position at a time when it should be in the od position.

al. lfurther ob'ect is to provide a switch with an operating member which may be readily attached and removed at will, ,and

which when removed' leaves the switch nec-- essarily in the od position and the parte so guarded as to`V prevent lilrelihood ol the switch beingmoved trom olii position entrlll cept by the attachment `oil the operating member. 5

'llhis device has beendet/sloped particularly lor use in connection with mine worlrs andothe lilre, but it will be apparent that the device may be as readily and as ediciently employed in other connections whenever desired.

@their objects and aims oi the invention, more or less specitic than those referred to above, will be in part obvious and in part pointed out in the course ol the lollowing description ot the elements, combinations, arrangements ol parts' and applications otprincl-ples, ,constituting the invention, and the scope ot protection contemplated will be indicated in the appended claims.

ln the accompanying drawings which are to be talren asa part ot this specication, and in which li have shown merely a prelerred term ot embodiment ot the invention:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view ol: a.

switch bon, with parts'shown in section to disclose a 'lcature ol this? invention.

l Fig., 2 is atop plan view ol the structure shown in Fig. l, andA Fig. 3 is' a transverse sectional view talren substantially upon the plane ot line lll oli Fi l., f h I l'l elerrin to the drawings tor describin.. i

in detail t e structure which 'is'illustrate therein, the relerence character lh indicates tion 13 and the legs the switchbox. This. may be of any size, shape or lorm and or any suitable mate'- rial to contain and protect the switch mechanlsm G. ln tact, in some instances, the switch bon might be omitted it desired.

The switch mechanism Gr illustrated, in* cludes abladel which is pivotally mounted as at 2,to swing' into and out oi electrical engagement with a pair oi coperative contacts 3 and t tor controlling passage of curi rent through the box.

rlFhe switch mechanismf is similar in its general construction to that illustrated in my pending application Serial No. 85,852 tiled March 22, 1916, and its operations may he 'controlled by the oscillating movement ci a plate 5 whichis pivotally mounted as at 6, to swing into on and oit positions.

wflihe operating. member, or handle ll, is

llornaed as a separate and independent mem ber and may be connected to and removed trom. the switch mechanism at will. inner end it is provided with a pair ohlegs 'l' which are spacedapart to receive a portion oi the plate 5 between them when the handle is inserted into operating position lili At its as shown in Fig. 3 and by the full lines in'- Fi'g. l.. VFlach oi the legs 7 is lornred with a s ot d longitudinally thereof and opening through the ends ci said legs and 'these slots engage over a suitable lug, or lugs, @profleeting laterally 'trom the opposite sides oit the plate 5, Freleraloly `two lugs are ernployed at each sidept lthe plate, and'these are spaced apart as'show'niso as to constitute in etiect an elongated member 'tor engaging within the slots d; By this arrangement the handle may be readily connected to the late 5 to swing the plate by means oit the andle; p

ln order to revent disengagement oi the handle trom the plate at all times except when the plate is. in the oil position, a semi-circular housing l0 is arranged a'djarcent'the plate, this housing having a slot ll termed through its arcuate wall 12 to receive thev operating handle. The operating' handle is termed with a. reduced ortion lf3 ot a size to move readily in the s ot. lit is also provided with a pairv ci shoulders lll at the junction betweeny the reduced por- 'l' and these shoulders ride beneath relatively over-hanging porn tions lli ot the housing at all times eacept.

when the plate o is in the olli position.

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When the plate 5 is in the off position the shoulders 14 register with an enlarged opening, 16 formed in the housing by cutting away a portion of the over-hanging parts 15 so that the handle may be withdrawn. The shoulders le riding beneath the parts l'positively preventthe withdrawal of the handle except when it registers with the opening 16.

In employing this device in connection, for instance, with mine work, the device is arranged at a convenient locality, either at the entrance to the mine, or at the entrance to a given portion of the mine. The miner obtains the operating handle,whichV may be numbered to identify it with a given switch box, from a main oliice. He then proceeds to the switch box, inserts the handle and handle when he leaves 'the mine.

moves the switch to on position. It is an established rule that he must return the Hencehe must necessarily swing the handle ainto the offposition in order to return it. Thus the current which he required for lights or other purposes' during his presence in the mine is necessarily shut ofi' when he leaves.

It vwill of course beyunderstood that whereverdesired the relativities as to size and proportions of the parts of the operating 'handle with respect to'the parts of the switch mechanism with which they coperate may be such so as to render a given switch ino erative except by means of a given handlle.

As many changes `could be made in this construction without departing from the scope of the i-nvention as defined in the following claims, it is intended that all matter contained inlthe above description or shown yin the accompanying drawings, shall be interpreted as illustrative only and not in a limiting sense. l

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is v 1. A safety switch operating device comprising a box, afswitch mechanism within the box having a partpivoted to swing into on and olf positions, an operating v handle having legs to straddle said part and having means to otherwise engage said part to swlng said part by said handle and to permit disconnection of said handle from said part, a guard member arranged to guard said part, said guard member. having anI arcuate wall formed with a slot therethrough to accommodate movements of the operating handle, the operating handle having a relatively. enlarged innerV lend ortion and a relatively reduced portion adjacent the relatively enlarged portion providing a shoulder upon the operating member, the slot being of a width to accommodate the relatively reduced portion and to provide an overhanging part disposed to be engaged by the shoulder of the operating handle to prevent detachment of the operating handle, and the slot being enlarged at one end to permit passage of the shoulder and detachment of the operating handle when the part is in the olf position.

2. A safety switch operating device comprising a switch member having a part movable into on and olf positions, a separately formed manually operable member for`moving said part, a guard member for said part, said manually operable member having a relatively enlarged end portion adapted for detachabl'e engagement with said movable switch part, said manually operable member also having a relatively reduced portion adjacent the relativelyenlarged portion providing a shoulder upon said manually movable member, said guard member having a portion standing to engage the relatively enlarged portion for preventing engagement of the manually operable member with said movable switch part except when said movable switch art is in 'the off position, and the relative y reduced ortion of the manually operable member eing disposed to accommodate the mentioned portion of the 4guard member above said shoulder when the movable switch member is in other than the off position.-

3. Ina switch mechanism comprising a box, a switch-blade therein, and a pivotally mounted operating element for said switch blade projecting outwardly through an opening in one wall of said box, the combination therewith of a guard member fixed tothe mentioned wall of the box in a position substantially inclosing the projecting p ortion of said operating element, a` separate handle having a part adapted to be inserted through an opening in said guard member and into functional relation with Said operating element, and said guard member and said handle having parts coperative to prevent the handle from being connected to or disconnected from said operating element except when said operating element is in a -given position of pivotal movement.

.In testimony whereof I affix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

i HUBERT F. KRANTZ.

Witnesses:

JOHN L. KoLLr., J. A. NEWTON.- 

